The Celtic Faery Path of the Shaman

The Celtic faery path of the shaman is based on the faery faith of
Western Europe. This belief is rooted in knowing that everything--in this world and the next--is alive and possesses
its own spirit or soul. It is not a new belief system, as animism has been around since long, long before Christ.
At one time man believed that everything had a soul; the trees, the earth, rocks, animals, everything, and believed
that they could communicate with nature as well. This is far from prevalent beliefs today that only man has a
soul and that everything else on the planet was put here for human kind's use.

The fairy faith has nothing to do with the tiny, light winged image of Disney fame. While some fair folk are
as small as the popular Tinkerbelle, others are quite large, and not all are cute. Contact between fairies
and humans was quiet common during pre-christen times, but with the crusades also came the need to demonize
the fey folk, and much of the communication was cut off; the fairies retiring to their world on the other
side of the cloak, if you will, in order to protect themselves from the ignorance of humans. Today Celtic
shamans are some of the only humans to be able to cross into this realm and continue to seek guidance from
these wise faeries.

Celtic shamans know that one tribe or clan is truly no better than the other. They follow their ancestral
paths just as American Indians or Australian Aborigines follow theirs. There has been a reconstruction of
this path, as it fell into memory during the last centuries, but it has experienced resurgence with the rising
of earth consciousness and today one can become an apprentice and begin to rediscover their shamanistic roots.

Celtic shamanism is not a religion or a faith, it is a belief system. With no dogma or doctrine, practitioners
are free to follow their hearts and create their own belief systems within the shamanistic traditions of
reverence of the earth and all who dwell upon or within it, all of nature, and all of humankind. You are
free to dance in fairy rings or mud puddles and to become a part of "The Great Work;" making, mending,
helping, and healing. Most Celtic shamans are teachers, healers, or counselors and celebrate whatever holidays
that they choose. Some are Christian, some Muslim, others have a strict set of faith and others have very
little structure at all. What they have in common is a bond with the fairy folk as to seeking answers in
order to help each other and the earth, and can move between the two worlds in order to seek guidance and
give thanks. This is the way of the Celtic Faery Path.

The Ancient Art of Faery Magick by D. J. Conway is a book you might really enjoy reading if you are intrigued
with the Celtic shamanism and the realtionship of faeries. The publlisher states the book is a thorough introduction
to faeries, including history, lore, and spells for making contact with these magickal creatures. And followers
of Celtic, Faery, Dianic, and Nordic traditions will all find an abundance of knowledge valuable to their
beliefs throughout this magickal faery book.